Chapter 19
No money.
Choyoon dug through the drawer once more and rubbed his forehead as he thought.
Indeed, no money.
Not much rice left, either.
Raising three children naturally incurs enormous expenses. Regardless of living a hermit-like life far from the secular world, people still needed to eat and wear clothes. Especially when these people are children at an age where they run around energetically.
"Sigh…"
Do I have to take that long journey again?
The amount of food the growing children ate increased daily. It seemed they consumed two sacks of rice every year. The cost for this was roughly one nyang of silver, which wasn’t a significant issue.
What made Choyoon sigh was the hassle of getting the rice.
The setting of the original novel "Return of the Hero" was China, fitting for a new wuxia novel. However, few novels strictly adhered to the geography of actual China, instead incorporating a lot of Korean-style interpretation and unique fantasy, making it quite different from ancient China. The geographical locations and place names were the same, but it was essentially a different world.
The only thing depicted as close to reality were the vast mountain ranges spread across China.
The Fugui Mountain Range, where Choyoon and the children lived, was a part of the Qinling Mountains that divided China in half. Located in the southern part of Shaanxi and northern Sichuan, it was close to the central plains but hidden by natural formations that made it a legendary place. Always shrouded in clouds and fog, outsiders passed by or got ensnared by these six large mountains without noticing them.
Thanks to that, it was always a struggle to buy provisions. Of course, it didn’t take much time for Choyoon to quickly go down the mountain alone, but to consistently procure enough for four people for several months, a small village market wasn’t sufficient.
Moreover, the staple food in the central plains these days was flour rather than rice, making it hard to find a place selling whole sacks of rice. However, a Korean inside Choyoon’s mind thought, ‘Kids grow better with rice than with flour-based foods,’ so he couldn’t give up.
So usually, Choyoon went alone to the bustling cities of Shaanxi. Compared to Sichuan, Shaanxi was less xenophobic and with many comings and goings, no one paid attention to a wandering pharmacist. Additionally, the Zhongnan faction in southern Shaanxi, overshadowed by the Zhuge family, was relatively quiet and well-behaved.
‘Should I go alone this time too? With Sayeong around, it wouldn’t be a problem to be away for ten days.’
Sayeong, who turned fifteen this year, had grown into a responsible child who cared for their younger siblings despite being a bit mischievous and cunning. At one point, Choyoon was worried their relationship might break apart, but they seemed to have overcome it reasonably well. While the adolescent phase was approaching, there was also anticipation for further growth.
Choyoon tapped the drawer with his fingertips, tilting his head as he thought.
‘But, Sahyeon hasn’t been listening to his sister recently. Even if Sayeong manages to maintain the hierarchy, with just three of them, who knows what could happen.’
Sahyeon listened to Sayeong better than anyone else. Perhaps because they were the only blood relatives they had, the reliance on his sister was significantly high.
But at thirteen, the age equivalent to entering middle school in modern Korea, Sahyeon started to talk back to Sayeong. Sayeong, who was more used to commanding her younger sibling than soothing him, seemed to be accumulating frustration.
When Choyoon was there, he mediated between them, but who knows what would happen if he was far away. Relationships between siblings close in age could deteriorate much easier than improve.
‘Cheono… What should I do about him? Indeed, I can’t leave them just the three of them.’
Choyoon sighed as he thought of the boy with jet-black hair and eyes, grabbing his forehead again.
There was no problem with Cheono. That was the problem.
Aside from the shocking axe incident when he was seven, Cheono hadn’t caused any significant trouble. Though it starkly showed his lack of moral and ethical standards, everything was within Choyoon’s ability to teach and guide. Cheono listened diligently and did not harbor unnecessary complaints, which was very thankful.
And above all, Cheono was undoubtedly a heaven-sent genius.
Even if the original author wasn’t highly skilled, within the novel, Cheono was depicted as winning despite not knowing how, being known as the world’s greatest martial artist and a remarkable strategist.
This meant that Cheono was incredibly smart and absorbed all his master’s teachings like a sponge.
Four years ago, when Choyoon taught him Qi and breathing exercises, the kid started condensing Qi within hours. Normally, even after building their body and foundation, starting Qi condensation within two years was considered fast, but Choyoon’s pupil had his dantian accumulating inner power the very day he learned it.
The kid grew so rapidly that it was hard to even call it exponential growth. If martial arts training occupied just a couple of hours a day and still got this far, if Cheono dedicated his whole day to it, he would have surpassed Ma Qingtong’s Martial Underworld in no time.
‘In the original story, he did actually crush the Martial Underworld. Enough said…’
Choyoon sighed deeply. This was the problem.
Sahyeon seemed to have developed an inferiority complex towards Cheono, whose martial prowess had surpassed his own.
Not being as cunning as his sister, he didn’t secretly harass Cheono but recently started openly avoiding him, which seemed to create frequent clashes with Sayeong.
‘No matter what I say to them, they only agree superficially, not resolving their issues… a different approach is needed.’
Solving one problem only led to several more cropping up. Arms crossed, deep in thought, an idea suddenly flashed through Choyoon’s mind.
Yes, that might work.
"This time, all of you will come with me."
At the sudden announcement, Cheono, clutching his chopsticks, froze. Sayeong was the first to turn to their master and asked.
"All three of us? You’re going to the village below?"
"No. We’ll take our time and travel far. You’ve all grown significantly. It will be hard to wear your current clothes, and it’s better to get new things."
"My goodness."
Sayeong and Sahyeon gulped down the remainder of their food without any side dishes and joined Choyoon, who was making an elixir, after cleaning their dishes.
"Where are you planning to go, Master?"
"Well, where does Sahyeon want to go?"
"I… I want to go to Henan. I’ve heard it’s very bustling there?"
"Sahyeon would get lost in such a place, Master. Let’s go to Sichuan. They say the mutton and fish dishes there are delicious."
"I… I won’t get lost! You only care about food, sis!"
"And you don’t?"
"Enough, both of you. Sayeong, you shouldn’t critique your brother so harshly. Sahyeon, show respect to your elder sister."
Sayeong and Sahyeon glared at each other but looked away after being scolded. Choyoon turned to Cheono, who was silently chewing the rest of his food alone at the table.
"Where do you want to go, Cheono?"
"Anywhere is fine with me."
It took him a moment to answer due to swallowing what was in his mouth. After washing it down with tepid tea and cleaning his dishes, Cheono stepped back. Seeing his siblings’ disgruntled faces, they got up and helped him.
After finishing the dishes, Cheono went to the yard to perform his breathing exercises. Before long, a white mist formed around his body, a byproduct of the Miwu Ilshik Heart Technique Cheono practiced.
Breathing in and out the mist, Cheono pondered. He hadn’t yet broken free from the basics, but he wondered what to transform the mist into that would best suit him. This was his main worry lately.
Returning to his room late at night, Cheono found his master seated on the bed, diligently making tiny elixirs. Fascinated, Cheono watched as over ten pills formed with each movement of the master’s hands.
"Come here."
Without looking up, Choyoon called Cheono. He organized his attire and knelt respectfully on the bed opposite Choyoon.
Choyoon lightly tapped the wooden bowl in front of him and said, "Take a piece of the mixture and taste it. Tell me about the ingredients."
Inside the bowl was the mixture used to make the elixirs. Cheono carefully took a bit and let it slowly dissolve on his tongue.
"It tastes like angelica, licorice… bitter ginseng and gardenia. I also sense the scent of peony, forsythia, and honeysuckle."
"Go on."
"I believe there’s pagoda flower bud as well. Lastly, there’s a distinct aroma of burdock seed, and it seems like it’s kneaded with honey."
"How many did you miss?"
"There’s one unfamiliar taste, and four that I’m uncertain about."
"Correct. Find and bring white silkworm, fangfeng, cork tree bark, schizonepeta, and baikal skullcap from the medicine cabinet. The names are all labeled."
Cheono stood and went to the large medicin
